Two Truths and a Lie
by socasm
Summary: An Originals alternate universe. The Originals return to New Orleans in chaos to the point of exposure. It all seemingly points to a corrupt corporation. The answer comes in an unlikely psychic, who may be linked to the imminent threat. As they race against time to stop any exposure, more threats lay in the distance.
1. Secrets and Lies

**A/N:**

This is an alternate universe story focusing on if New Orleans started to go to hell, and if a psychic could help find out what happened. Adding a what if with what happens when that psychic is apart of it.

Most events happened in TVD, except Hayley isn't pregnant. Marcel isn't present at first either, each will be presented quickly.

I do not own The Originals. Just my own characters.

-Chapter One-

If Iris had known that those five words would have brought New Orleans down on her shoulders like a petite atlas, she would not have said them. Instead of being at the lively bar on a rainy April evening, she would be at her cramped apartment hunched over a case file drinking water. Instead, she was here she was with a showdown with a disagreeable man.

"The game is called two truths and a lie," Iris said proudly on her fateful Thursday night. Running a finger around the rim of her empty glass, proudly staring him down. "All you do is tell me three statements, and I tell you the lie. What do you say, Reggie?"

"It's Reginald. Reginald Burmester," Reggie said sourly taking another long drink of his beer.

To Iris, he looked like a balding lion that took a bad turn somewhere. Hair was thinning, and the golden color faded, but he slicked it back. In what was once bright brown eyes in the pictures she had seen from the file, they were fading into something hateful and unsettling. His clothes marked him as important, with a cotton dress shirt and flashing Rolex.

"That is a very fine lawyer's name, Reggie. My name is Iris Caldwell, a name that doesn't inspire awe," she said with a hint of a smile. "That's something you already know since you knew my dad and I'm the ghost of Legal Past."

Erin Rose was noisy, distracting as well as a proud Irish bar on Conti Street in the French Quarter. A football game played on the screens, the fans cheered and booed at their favorite players. Signs hung from wall to ceiling over the bar and around the walls including a bright neon green sign saying 'prescriptions'. Colorful bottles and old memorabilia stood proudly behind the wooden bar.

"Is that your plan? Bait me with a high school game? I'm sure that drink was bought by a crafty fake ID," he countered, steadily growing more restless in playing with his phone in front of him. The thoughts were still coming out as invasive, despite her best attempts.

She can't- I won't- that won't...

Iris analyzed him at this moment she was knowing was close. The thoughts were more coherent and louder. Her mind fought off the buzzed haze, as it processed the information, her mind behind the greedy monster it was.

"What I think is that you know truths that you don't want other people to know. That's making you nervous right now," Iris leaned forward with a knowing smile. "I can hear your thoughts becoming more focused as we speak."

Just like that, her prey snapped, rising suddenly. The chair scraped loudly against across the floor. Reggie's face was steadily turning red as he leaned forward. She felt the effect was lost considering he was close to her own short height.

"This is bigger than you, little girl. You'd do best to walk away now," Reginald said tensely. Dramatically he stormed away bumping into tables and people along the way. She watched him the whole way out.

Somewhere between the stunned sitting on her chair to the walk of shame to the bar, she knew she had messed up. Phased for a moment by the glimmering bottles behind the bar before Talia walked into view. Her tall friend was a beauty, shimmering hair and ideal makeup, the woman could chew you up in a moment.

"You need a drink," Talia said easily, before pushing an Irish whiskey over to her. "That was not bad, though. You got a good rise out of him. I don't know if that will go well for you. I mean, there's a lot of bad rumors out there about him."

Gonna need to pray for her tonight.

"Bad rumors?" Iris asked, her grasp slacking on the grasp of her cold glass. If she just provoked a dirty lawyer, she was fucked. "Um, what sort of bad rumors, Talia?"

A man sat next to her, she glanced at him with an annoyed sound. Talia was instantly over him. He was a handsome man with dark blond hair that gave way to little curls and angular jawline. There was a devilish look in those blue eyes.

"A whiskey, please," he said in a deep voice, a British accent still thicker.

"Of course," Talia giggled, grabbing a glass she poured extra slowly keeping eye contact with him. Handing the drink to him carefully. She leaned forward in attention grabbing move. "Anything else for you, handsome?"

"Oh, God," Iris muttered under her breath. Taking her drink she took a strong swig, letting the burn take her mind for a moment. Pulling out her phone, she began looking for the right app for something, she just didn't know what it was right now.

"There is, you can give your lovely friend and me five minutes to talk without interruption," he said with a devil may care smile. He seemed to catch her eye and immediately Talia smiled and walked away without a thought.

There were only static sounds from him.

Iris stared after Talia and then looked back to him. Only static, and tenacious Talia walked away, she had only seen this once in her life and that had ended in an incident that had changed her entire life.

"What are you?" Iris asked with surprising courage, leaning back away from the bar.

Devil gave a chuckle, easily taking a drink before placing the drink down. "That is a story all in itself, that I'd gladly tell you. I must admit that I am impressed with your ability. I'd like to offer a deal."


	2. 2 Devil You Know

It seems your witch pulled through, she might be useful after all. I am looking at our psychic now.

Klaus pressed the send button, placing the phone back in his pocket. He moved to her side and the events began to unfold as planned. She had focused elsewhere, her tall friend was gone, and she had spoken to him.

It had been the question of what he was, that surprised him. He pressed forward in his mission to obtain the psychic for his own purpose, he could not afford to miss a beat with someone of her ability.

"Has no one offered you a deal before, love?" He asked, taking a drink keeping his eyes on her. She was a lovely vision with draping dark hair, the youthful face was contrasted by her knowing bright blue eyes. Under the jacket, he could see traces of a tattoo creeping over her shoulder.

"When the devil offers a deal, it usually ends badly for the person on the other end," the woman answered simply. Keeping eye contact, she played with the condensation from her glass.

Klaus had thought this would be boring when he entered Erin Rose. She was proving herself to be quite the fascinating woman. He chuckled as he finished the drink, turning completely to face her.

"Normally it takes far longer to be called the devil. My name is Klaus."

"Iris."

A cold breeze entered the room and the sound of heavy rainfall followed after. A new roudy bunch of patrons entered the room. Crowding around the central part of the room adding to the noise of the room.

"Call from David," Iris' phone announced. Dashing to pick it up Iris turned away from Klaus as if that would keep him from hearing her phone call.

"I got a dispatch call. There was a break-in at your apartment. I'm on my way now," David said, the sound of the rain and moving car in the background.

She sucked in a breath rubbing her temple. "Thanks for letting me know. I'll be there as soon as I can. Please try to keep them away from the boxes in the kitchen."

Hanging up with haste she stood up looking toward him. "This has been very interesting, Klaus but I need to go now."

"Something like your apartment being broken into and some important item in the kitchen?" He asked with raising an eyebrow toward her. That look of shock amused him. "Perhaps I could be of assistance."

She regarded him for a minute. The surprise turning into an incredulous expression, checking her phone for the time, she gave a nod. "Yeah, okay, and I'll give you till morning to convince me to work with you. It's not like I'll be sleeping tonight, anyway."

Outside the drivers honked furiously at each other, the colorful French Quarter buildings blended into a gray haze. When inside his car, the rain began to fall down harder. She seemed at ease with the rain as she lowered her hood.

Her apartment was on the riverfront, the white building turning a flashing red and blue color from the sleek police car parked up front. As soon as they parked, the lights stopped, and a man stepped out in a red umbrella.

"The man on the phone was a detective, wasn't he?" Klaus asked as he turned off the car. Looking to her with a frown. As a general rule of thumb, the supernatural and law enforcement did not play well together.

"Uh, yeah, David is a detective a friend of my ex, who is also a detective," Iris said looking to him as if he knew this. "I work for the Portland Police department in archives. You could have asked and I would have told you."

David knocked on the window. He was a tall man, with tan skin, and hazel eyes. The dark suit was contrasted by the umbrella. Placing her hood back on before stepped out and walked to David beginning to talk to him.

Klaus stepped out as David finished explaining.

"This is Klaus, he was nice enough to offer a ride," Iris said to David gesturing to Klaus as he stepped to her side.

"It's nice to meet you. Thanks for getting her here, I can take it from here, though," David said with a nod as they started to walk inside. Both men stuck to her side but she didn't seem to notice at all.

"I'm sure it is. I can take it from here, detective," Klaus answered looking to him. What a nuisance this man was, and for the moment he could not do anything without ruining what trust the psychic had in him.

Iris gave an annoyed sound, before charging into the building. Right up to the stairs, he went and Klaus kept pace, cursing the slow speed of humans. David remained behind them, while Iris was distracted with going up Klaus took his moment.

"You will remain outside on an important call, do not enter for anything. You will remember only what you are told," Klaus compelled looking at the man. Watching the vacant expression, the detective continued.

"David!" Iris called from the doorway of her apartment.

Dashing forward, Klaus saw the two bodies of the officers, unconscious with drool covering the corner of their mouths. The slanted room had books and boxes everywhere. Picture frames and trinkets were tossed to the ground.

She didn't stop to check on the officers as David made the phone call. Stopping in the narrow kitchen she pulled up a box grasping a Betty Crocker cookbook, where the front had been cut open.

"No...no...no..." She whispered, reaching inside for any sign of what had been inside.

A curious place to hide any documents, he thought as he stood at the entrance of the kitchen. She continued scouring the box for the documents frantically. Picking up the cookbook, he looked to her oddly.

"This cookbook is that important?" He asked flipping through the aged pages.

"It's not the cookbook that's important. It had...it had files on that man I was trying to get information from," Iris said rising slowly, sagging against the counter and closed her eyes. "You really have no idea who he is, do you?"

Klaus shrugged, placing the cookbook down on the counter. The chaos was well known and what it had to do with one pathetic looking man was beyond him. She stared at him as if he grew another limb.

"Reginald Burmester is a top lawyer here. He...he ruined my dad's life...and when I came here. Every little trail between deaths, disappearances, and even businesses seemed to lead to him," Iris explained, her eyes taking in the chaos of her apartment with a sigh. "Looks like it will be to the morning, Klaus."

She walked out to talk to David, and Klaus followed after her. There was more like Sophie had said after all.

A/N:

12/27/17: A successful second chapter! I hope you enjoyed it. This is a slow build up but it's well worth the wait.

1/2/18: Edited and some contents added. Sorry about the work. Sometimes this feels like roadwork in Utah.

Please let me know what you think! Feeback and support is greatly appreciated! Thank you to all those that have given your support.


	3. 3 Two Brothers

In reverence the red-dressed women placed down their torches, chanting under their breath. She didn't understand what they were saying, she understood the feeling of her mind beginning to splice. The parted for an older woman with stark eyes, looking at her with affection.

She spoke words in a tongue she did not know, but her words rang clear in her mind.

To be more, you must sacrifice more.

The older woman placed down the last torch, as the flames grew higher around her. Instead of screaming, she looked up to the clear night sky, watching as two ravens sat on a branch watching her. In unison, they flew away.

Iris' lungs felt as if they were filled with cotton balls, the room unusually warm. Closing her eyes tighter at the smell of smoke. The fire seemed to be growing hotter around the bed. This was not real, it was her reality slipping.

"It's just a moment in time, it's just a moment in time," Iris wheezed, relaxing the grip on her sheets. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw two ravens flying across her room, through the skylight above her bed.

Sitting up, Iris looked to the chaos of her room. Clothes were scattered everywhere, boxes laid on their side, and glassless picture frames stacked on top of each other. Two partial busts of ravens remained on the desk.

At least that explained the last part, she thought, rubbing her eyes. Stumbling over a few items, Iris found her way out of the bedroom and into the long, white hallway.

Jumping at the shuffling sound in her kitchen, two male voices were discussing in a quiet tone, both sounded deep and accented. One belonged to Klaus, that voice could live inside her head forever, the other she wasn't sure.

Slowly she entered the living room, where Klaus was flipping through a book, and the second male looked at her kitchen with disdain. The dark suit against the white kitchen, the skylight above his head. Everything aside from his skin was dark it seemed. He was also handsome in a classical sense.

"Property of Professor Declan Caldwell. Cultural anthropology of the University of Portland," Klaus commented dryly holding the book up. "Of all the new interesting aspects of this new age, he chose to study Nordic mythology."

"Niklaus, that is not what we say in our present situation," the other male chided, placing a cup down on the counter.

Iris looked at Klaus darkly setting her jaw. Eyeing the other man wearily, leaning against the entrance of the hallway. "Who the hell are you?"

"See, I'm not the only one with impolite manners here, brother," Klaus smirked, placing down the book on the table.

Truth.

The brother turned more toward her with a practiced smile in place. Proper to the core, she thought as she crossed her arms across her chest. She felt underdressed compared to the two, brother in his fancy suit, and Klaus in that black leather jacket. She was in a tank top and plaid pajama bottoms.

"I am Elijah Mikaelson, Niklaus' elder brother. You must be Iris Caldwell. He has spoken of your ability, it's impressive," Elijah answered with that same smile. "I have picked up coffee and light breakfast."

Truth.

Iris remained where she was, looking around her apartment. Items were placed back in the boxes, she knew it wasn't organized, it hadn't been even before the break-in. Feeling her mind drift away.

"It must have been a long night. I applaud you for surviving my brother for most of the night. I am curious about what he told you last night," Elijah made the gap between them and handed her a coffee.

Iris nodded taking the coffee to the kitchen table, the view overlooked the river, her favorite spot in the entire apartment. Taking a long sip she turned the chair to looked to the other two.

"He told me that he was a vampire-werewolf hybrid, made it seem like a big deal, so it must be a big deal. Maybe even some of the story, but I can't remember. Also informed me that he wants to me to reclaim his city," Iris recounted slowly. "And you probably want to know what I told him."

Klaus had grown bored of the conversation and sat down to look over the same book. For a moment there was a smile.

"That'd be delightful, Niklaus has a tendency to leave important information out," Elijah said sitting down across from her. She found herself shifting under his intense gaze before taking a breath.

"Okay, so this lawyer, Reginald Burmester. He's been in the same law firm as a minor associate for twenty years. Five years ago, he suddenly becomes head along with Magnus Isaksen and Helen Yates. Helen retired two years ago, and Isaksen had a stroke five years ago," she recited out of memory.

"There's always been strange reports for New Orleans. It grew stranger. LIke a gang war, brutal animal attacks then aneurysms or like a tornado hit the body. It all started with this firm, and no one can really recall anything."

Elijah had listened intently, Klaus, on the other hand, had shifted in boredom, placing the book down and wandering over. She felt his gaze on the tattoo on her shoulder. The intricate raven tattoo on a branch.

"You're missing the best part," Klaus encouraged, gesturing for her to continue. "Go on, love. You explained so well why you are doing this. Uprooting her entire life, career, and a good boyfriend, If I recall."

Iris grimaced grasping the cup lightly before letting out a breath.

"Thanks, Klaus," Iris said dryly before looking to Elijah's keen eyes. "Bottom line...Reggie knew my dad, and ten years ago destroyed his life, and eventually his death. Out of the blue, my mom gives me this file about Reggie saying I need to know. That's it."

Elijah looked thoughtful before folding his hands.

"Will you help me, if I help you?" She asked glancing to the both of them. It was dealing with a devil and the devil's brother. It was one of her few shots at getting what she wanted quickly. Her apartment trashed was only the first step.

"That's a deal, now to begin working," Klaus smirked satisfied. When he won, everyone won.

A/N:

12/30/17- First uploaded. A bit more of information than intended but it works out in the end.

1/3/18- Mostly rewritten, and updated, with far more information. I really hate to do that but sometimes you need to. Let me know what you think.

Thank you for all those that continue to read or just starting, I cannot do this without you. So, please if there's any comments or suggestions let me know.


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